ST. LOUIS – St. Louis Police Chief Robert Tracy and Mayor Tishaura Jones said an officer struck by a vehicle on Interstate 70 while pursuing carjacking suspects has a long road to recovery ahead of him but is expected to survive.

The officer was struck by a vehicle Monday morning in the Interstate 70 express lane near Shreve Avenue.

Mayor Jones and Chief Tracy provided an update on the officer’s condition during a 4 p.m. news conference. They said they spoke with the officer’s family approximately 45 minutes earlier.

Both encouraged St. Louisans to offer prayers and well-wishes for the officer’s recovery.

“We are forever in his debt,” Mayor Jones said.

The officer suffered major injuries, the police chief said.

The incident began after the Metro East Auto Theft Task Force sent out an alert regarding a Toyota Rav 4 that had been carjacked in East St. Louis. That vehicle was spotted in the 4800 block of Cote Brilliante Avenue in the Kingsway East neighborhood, Chief Tracy said.

The suspects got out of that vehicle and entered an Acura, which had been reported stolen out of Belleville, Tracy said. St. Louis police spotted the stolen Acura in the 5400 block of Queens Avenue in the Mark Twain neighborhood. Police attempted to make a traffic stop but the Acura sped off.

During that pursuit, Tracy said the driver of the Acura attempted to swerve and hit an officer who was laying spike strips on the road. The officer avoided being hit and the car was successfully spiked.

The Acura continued entered eastbound I-70 from North Kingshighway Boulevard but struck another vehicle at Shreve Avenue.

Chief Tracy said the 18-year-old driver of the Acura attempted to escape on foot, but was arrested nearby. The front passenger, a 20-year-old, stayed in the vehicle and was taken into custody. The third suspect left the backseat, jumped the median, and tried to run away.

One of the pursuing officers got out of his vehicle and held the third suspect at gunpoint. When the officer scaled the median and entered the eastbound expressway, both he and the suspect were struck by an oncoming car, Tracy said.

The injured officer fired what Chief Tracy called “safety shots” to alert nearby officers to his presence. Other officers responded and immediately began to administer first aid to their injured colleague and the suspect.

With time of the essence, officers put the injured officer in a police Tahoe and raced to Barnes Jewish Hospital, where the officer was taken into surgery for leg trauma. Chief Tracy credits the officers’ swift actions for keeping the officer alive.

The injured suspect was taken to another hospital and is listed in critical, unstable condition.

Chief Tracy said two firearms were recovered from the stolen Acura but did not provide any additional information regarding the guns.

The vehicle that struck the officer and suspect is believed to be a 2008 to 2013 Cadillac CTS sedan. There’s possible damage to the rear passenger side and tailgate. The rear bumper was seen hanging off the vehicle. Anyone with information on the Cadillac’s whereabouts is encouraged to call CrimeStoppers at 866-371-TIPS.

Chief Tracy has not identified the officer to protect his family’s privacy. He said the officer is 31 years old and is a six-year veteran of the SLMPD.

This is a developing news story and is being updated. Please refresh this story every few minutes as new details and information are added.